On June 30 in Macclesfield, and across the country, the first stamp duty holiday deadline passed whereby there was 0% stamp duty on properties up to £500,000.

However, until September 30 this year, there is still no stamp duty to pay on properties up to £250,000 (up to £300k for first-time buyers).

Many people are wondering what effect there will be on the property market and respective house prices with the temporary changes coming to an end.

Property prices have been increasing at the fastest annual rate in 17 years according to the latest Nationwide house price index.

This includes a staggering 13.4% annual growth in June, the highest level since November 2004.

There appears to still be significant momentum as a shortage of property being listed for sale means demand is outstripping supply.

Whilst this is the case, the market will continue to be competitive as buyers compete for what little is available.

However, with the winding down of the stamp duty holiday, coupled with the government's announcement of further easing of COVID-19 restrictions on 19 July, it seems likely that there will be a return to normality which in turn should see more sellers come to market.

As the choice begins to increase for buyers, the feeding frenzy that sellers have been enjoying over the last 12 months or so should start to dissipate. It was reported that almost a third of properties were selling for above asking price!

Even with increasing choice, the market is likely to stay strong for the remainder of the year as it will take a little time for sellers to come to market.

Rightmove report that there are still large numbers of buyers sending enquiries to estate agents – up 40% on the same period in 2019.

With the economy hopefully continuing to recover as restrictions loosen further, and whilst interest rates remain low, there will still be buyers coming to market regardless of the stamp duty holiday coming to an end.

This article was nubbed by Belvoir Macclesfield.

You can learn more about the Mill Street estate and lettings agent here.

Did you know Belvoir Macclesfield donates a significant portion of their fees to charities in Macclesfield.

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